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At the base of deception: divert the attention

In this article, we continue the discussion about how to “disappear” in the crowd (read Be invisible in the crowd: eyes and attitudes).

As illusionists do, most importantly than having a good juggling ability, we need a good way to divert attention from the trick itself. The deception that makes invisible our passage must be contextualized in anything that forces the observers’ brain (read Deception and brain waves) activity to:

Remain below the warning level
Be completely focused on another target

A note By Master Kongling – Even if the theory appears simple, its implementation is not at all: we need to plan, test and build a solid experience.

How to lower the alert of the observers and become “invisible”

Let’s see a list of extremely practical tips about how to act and move without arousing suspicion:

How to Do not look like a wolf – Couples, families, tourists, sportsmen, attendants, workers, students, older people (depending on the situation) do not attract attention and do not raise the guard level
How to justify our presence – To bring a dog can always be a good excuse to justify our presence (even at night, even in deserted places); in this way, we can walk or stop at our leisure wherever we want
How to stop – If we have to stop somewhere without arousing suspicion, we can pick up the phone, rummage in our bag or make use of other common items (use lipstick, drink mineral water, etc.)
How to make a photo – If we have to take a picture or a video we can pretend a rapid selfie (if that makes sense), a video call (we have to be spontaneous or do it for real), we can change the music track on our device (with headphones on), etc.
How to look upward / downward – If we have to look down we have to let something drop, to search and find it: if we have to look upward let’s dress a jacket (let’s use creativity but keeping ourselves 100% natural)
How to look behind – If we have to look behind us we have to find / take reflective surfaces (glasses, mirrors, cutlery, metal boxes, etc.), anything that can make sense in the context we are
How to get closer – Cigarettes and lighter in our pocket should not miss, they allow us to get in touch contact to any type of person (for example, if we want to get closer to a person X, let’s simply ask the person-not-involved Y but close to X if he has a lighter)
How to take time – Chewing gum and candy allow us to take time; we always need them (more complex are they to open, the better they are); if we have to leave a place but we need a few extra moments, open for example a candy pocket can be a convenient expedient
How to do not attract attention – Never stop walking / acting to think, to act or to observe, if we have to think let’s do it while performing an ordinary action (eg. send a message with the smartphone)
How to do not interrupt the flow of the scenario – Do not let us leave the usual paths of the people, if we change direction, we have to give meaning to our change; this is valid both for spatial movements, both for mental paths (we must observe the dynamics of the scenario and replicate them in the most faithful but natural way possible)
…

A note by Master Kongling – The best way to learn is to film us.

How to raise the alert of the observers and become “invisible”

As we said at the beginning, if we have to do something that would certainly arouse suspicion, we have to act like illusionists. We must plan how to divert attention from the trick, to focus it on a “harmless” event that can arouse greater interest:

A sensorial stimulus – A big noise, light, smell, etc. (or a combination of them)
A logical stimulus – A series of consequent actions (1-2-3, A-B-C, etc.), a false alert, a necessary reaction, an overloading, etc.

Each of these stimuli can be:

Active (voluntarily generated by us)
Passive (already part of the scenario)

Let’s see a few examples:

Ubi maior minor cessat – “Ubi maior minor cessat”, where there is the major, the minor is neglected (or becomes negligible); if we are suspicious we can make something or someone else become much more interesting than us
A multitude of stimuli – When the simultaneous stimuli are exponentially high, the mind goes into confusion and the alert gives way to dismay, to the amazement
Opposite directions – Given 2-3 identical and synced stimuli that move (spatially or conceptually) in diametrically opposite directions, the mind makes a choice by preferring one over another but with a short delay due to the necessary analysis (a handful of instants that in many cases can be fundamental)
…

Final notes

How to solve the most common problems:

Never have an elusive look, if a person looks at us for more than 5-10 seconds, we have to look his eyes with a vacant look but not for a longer time
If someone is watching us insistently (more than 5-10 seconds), he is attracted by us (we have done something suspect); after a rapid analysis (if we do not have forcibly to escape), let’s walk in his direction and (if reasonable), let’s ask him for a small help / information (realistic, quick and simple things); if we have not been discovered, let us not turn away, it would signify to confirm the suspicions
…

It must be stressed again that these are just mind working examples, in real life we always need:

Preparation (study a strategy, try the role, and prepare the loopholes)
Discipline (keep a cool head and never stop to recite spontaneously)
Concentration (react quickly, adapt the theory to practice and be ready to improvise)

A note by Master Kongling – Why do we study this kind of deception (partly from Ninjutsu)? Why do we reason from a point of view that, ethically, it would seem that of a criminal? The reasons are 2: the first is that knowledge is never harmful, it represents a way of immunizing oneself from the action of the “bad guys”; the second reason is that among our readers there are various professional figures who, in the service of the law, need to know how to stalk (plainclothes policemen, spies, etc.).

In-depth articles

The paths of deception – How 6 Dragons Kung Fu addresses and exploit deception
Invisibility: the best night stealth color – What was the real color of ancient ninja uniforms?

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Did you ever happen to have attracted the attention of a stranger?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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